RIT Antiwar Counter-Recruits with Local Rochester High School Students

By: Daniel Cummings (Coordinating Committee member of RIT Antiwar)

RIT Antiwar has engaged in counter-recruitment at Rush Henrietta Senior High School in Henrietta the past two days, February fifteenth and sixteenth 2006, with the help of roughly five high school students. RIT Antiwar first met the students at an antiwar protest in downtown Rochester when they put out the call for all Rochester students to take up counter-recruitment efforts. The students then went to one of RIT Antiwar’s meetings and we were able to organize going into the high school with the help of Rochester Antiwar (RAW).

RAW had meetings with the Rochester city school board and school administrations making sure antiwar groups are allowed equal access to high schools just as recruiters are. In the end RAW was able to gain permission for RIT Antiwar to go into the schools for the purpose of counter-recruitment.

When RIT Antiwar arrived at Rush Henrietta Senior High School and set up they found a sizable group of students serious about counter-recruitment and forming an antiwar group with their help. RIT Antiwar has given them literature on how to start a Campus Antiwar Network (CAN) chapter and information to hand out to students around their school about the war.

In addition to helping them to start an antiwar group or CAN chapter RIT Antiwar is incorporating them into RAW and have encouraged them to come to the meeting this Saturday, February eighteenth 2006, to help plan the city wide March eighteenth demonstration.

RIT Antiwar is hoping this will lead to a growth of the antiwar movement in Rochester and lead to more high schools getting involved in the antiwar movement and counter-recruiting. RIT Antiwar hopes this can be an example for the rest of CAN showing that CAN will grow and strengthen at the high school level with the help of college chapters.